Last week of September

It has been another interesting week in the Financial World. Another big bank failed (Washington Mutual) and one is on the brink of failure (Wachovia). It appears as though Congress will pass the Recovery Plan this week which will be good.

Here are a couple of pics of Bern's new car. It is a 2009 Volkswagen GTI - it is little with lots of interior room (Derek who is now over 6'5" fits easy in the back seat.


It is FAST .... yet looks docile --it is NOT. When that Turbo boost kicks in you better have money in your pocket cuz you will bury the speed limit FAST


Michael Turned 23 this week and my sister Nancy turned another year older the same day (she was featured last week) Mike & I had some appointment in Daytona on Wednesday.



On Thursday I had to head to Naples for a meeting of the top 50 advisors in the state....my room had a great view of the Gulf of Mexico. The training was good and the interaction with the other advisors was OUTSTANDING

Another week in in the life

Well I harvested a few pics off the I Phone for this weeks blog. I am always amazed that a phone takes decent pics. This is my sister Nancy -- we got to have lunch and spend some time with her while in NY







This my other sister Jeanne. She is the oldest of the siblings. We had a chance to spend an evening at her camp near Hope NY while there.




Here is a pic taken of the 3 of us when we stopped by Jeanne's job to say hi. I did not realize how little my big sisters are.





We recently traded Bern's BMW in on a Volkswagen GTI. It is a great lil car. Do not let the appearance lull you into complacency this is a FAST lil machine that corners like it is on rails.

It is a two faced car....ONE - a lil compact economy car-- TWO---A demon speed racer-- if you let the 200hp turbo charged engine spool up you best have it pointed in the right direction.

It was a nice week albeit the stock market was a bit sketchy...if you were gone for a week and a half you would not know anything happened -- except for Lehman Bros is gone and Merrill Lynch is owned by a Bank

New York and Vermont

Bernice and I flew up to New York on early Wednesday morning. We we able to see Dad, Nancy, Jeanne and Berns Dad all in the afternoon prior to dinner.  Then we went out to eat with Dad and Ann ---pictured to the right

Early the next morning we headed over to Middlebury VT  to do some cycling. Of course a trip to Vermont is not complete without the required covered bridge photo


Along the way we saw some interesting markings on the road. We were trying to decipher the markings when who should appear. 

Our trusty mechanic, friend and tour guide for the day Jim Benson. Jim was the mechanic for our  cross country trip last summer.  He did a great job of leading us on quiet roads through the Champlain basin. Thanks Jim !!!

The flowers were in bloom and their were all colors to behold as fall arrives in the northeast.


We stayed at the Cornwall Orchard B&B just outside of Middlebury VT. This is a pic of our hosts Bob & Juliet. They provided great hospitality, excellent breakfasts and a quaint and relaxing environment.











 We spent two days cycling the hills of Vermont.  We saw 13% -14% on the GPS for gradient several times and 6 -8 % was very common.  UP & DOWN was the common track.   We followed Jim the first day and he routed us the second day --- excellent scenery and roads.

We had a nice scenic drive home and were able to bring home some NY apples.

Last night we had a nice time at my sisters camp on the river and got to spend some time with my nephew Colby.

new computer .....missed a week

Last week I was switching lap-tops and hence I missed a week. Derek's Laptop died and so I gave him mine and bought a new one. In the turmoil of getting everything put on the new one and backing up data I was distracted.

News on my Hip---- all is well. Apparently the pain was from a bursitis and was just a short term inflammation the X-ray looked fine. Most of all I have free and full use of my hip without ANY pain. In fact last week while at the beach over Labor Day I was able to play several hours of Beach volleyball with no discomfort

We were able to go camping last weekend at Anastasia State Park in St Augustine
 The weather was great all weekend. and as you can see the surf was  high  due to Hurricane Hannah passing by ---well out to sea.

We had a blast int he 4 - 5 foot seas on Boogie boards and just swimming. You did have to be cautious about the currents as they were VERY strong.

We enjoy watching the people the clouds the water and the sea gulls. Those things are pretty intelligent if you observe them for a few minutes. I find it amazing how they will congregate at the very indication of food.  Then again that is what Derek does.

The beach had suffered a lot of erosion from Hurricane Fay which was not a real bad storm but it sat off the coast for hours producing heavy rain in some places and very high surf.  

I liked this picture at is reminded me that we are not alone as we walk through life.  We face many things in life but all of them pass to us through the hand of God. I find that to be a very real comfort as I seek Him to figure out what to do.  

This world has a few too many twists and turns to try to face them alone. It is good to be able to seek the face of God and rely on His guidance.

We had Mike and Cayce spend the weekend with us. It is neat to see their young marriage growing and to see them enjoy each others company.
 They were able to go see the Gators play Hawaii  then head over for the balance of the weekend.  

Yesterday they were at the Gators victory over Miami.  Michael and some friends roasted a full size pig for their tail-gating festivities. 

If you wonder why no pics of Derek..... He was there all weekend but spends all his time down the beach with his buddy playing beach volleyball.  They play for hours.

We were able to meet some friends -- The Cooks while there. We have camped with them for several years now on Labor day and Memorial Day.   His daughter is not really as scared as she looked.  She was probably hoping they were not going back to a Pop up trailer since they recently upgraded to a huge 36' Motor Coach.  The thing is very nice .....maybe over the top ---It has 4 flat screen TV's (one outside) if that gives you an idea. Maybe their Eyes are like that from the TVs (just kidding Bob)

Storms and a sore hip

It was a week of predicted storms --that for us here in Ocala did not ever hit hard though we did get some much needed rain. I would guess there was somewhere north of 5
inches but the winds never got over 35 mph here. I am glad we did not get hit harder.

I only got to ride on Monday then it proceeded to RAIN some each including today.




My left hip developed acute bursitis last week. For a couple days I was in SERIOUS PAIN.... finally got some strong anti inflammatory drugs and it is healed. I have gone from very healthy and flexible to nearly immobile and back again in the span of 6 days.

My doctor buddy Don said it is kind of like a blister on the ball end of the femur and it can develop soon and is easily treatable ....well by yesterday I was healed.

Having an ailment like that REALLY makes you appreciate good health.








Wow a moment ago the sun was out. Reminds of the lyrics from:
Hello muddah, hello faddah
Here I am at Camp Granada.
Camp is very entertaining,
And they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining!
-------------------

Wait a minute; it stopped hailing.
Guys are swimming, guys are sailing.
Playing baseball, gee that's better.
Muddah, faddah, kindly disregard this letter!

Mid August and there is a storm brewing

It is the time of year when storms are common and we have one heading our way. You never know if they will strengthen or follow projected paths BUT you need to be ready so we have our water and have tested our generator. Now we wait.


Back to last week in Chicago-- here is a pic of an old friend of mine "Mel" from Baltimore. It is fun at these meetings to pick up with old friends and Derek liked Mel( He is a funny Guy)

the Brian Setzer Orchestra played a private concert for us on Friday evening they were VERY GOOD

This is one of the cool buildings in the city...affectionately known as the "corn cob" -- it sits on the rivers edge and has parking on the bottom 3rd and then a multitude of balconies above. It was across the river from our hotel.


We had guests from China this week to keep up with the fever surrounding the Olympics. This was not a family of gymnasts rather some very good friends of mine that live there Teaching English in the University in the city Liaocheng (about 4 hours from the Olympics.

On another note we are having Michael Phelps for dinner next Saturday.

.......ummmm..........Not the swimmer but the owner of our local bike shop.

A few days in Chicago

Derek and I just returned from Chicago where he celebrated his 18th birthday while attending an award conference with me. The Ameriprise National conference is held every two years and rewards the top 10% of advisors with an amazing conference.





Immediately after landing at Midway we went on an architectural cruise on the Chicago river where we marveled at the diverse sky scape of Chicago.






On Thursday morning we heard Chris Gardener speak. He was homeless and became wealthy. This is the man the movie "Pursuit of Happyness" is based on. (that is how they spelled Happiness)




On Thursday afternoon we went on a Segway Tour around the city and saw the city up close. What a fun way to get around and enjoy a beautiful city.











On Friday afternoon we were able to see the Cubs beat the Cards at Wrigley field. We were at a rooftop party for the game. Very nice way to see a ballgame. The Cubs fans sell out every home game all 42,000 seats-- Amazing for a team with no world series win for the last 100 years.





We rode the subway to the stadium and enjoyed a scenic walk back to the hotel in a city we greatly enjoyed.







Friday night we had a dinner and were able to catch up with old friends. Here I am with my buddy Wes from Tallahassee. It was a great evening.







Our entertainment was provided by the Brian Setzer Orchestra. He is the guy who played in Stray Cats. They play swing music and they put on a GREAT show!!!!









On Saturday we were addressed by Magic Johnson, former NBA great from the LA Lakers. He has become a well established entrepreneur.





On Saturday afternoon we were able to tour the Lincoln Park Zoo. A free zoo that I like much better than the San Diego Zoo





We were able to have lunch and tour the zoo with "Uncle Joel" who lives in
Chicago and was with us on our cross country ride last Summer. It was very good to catch up with Joel.







With the Hancock tower in the background today we left the windy city and safely got back to Ocala.